Liturgy in hell. Under KFOR 'protection,' Albanians throw stones at Orthodox priest

July 14, 2002, Serb Orthodox priests and monks left a destroyed monastery in the south of Kosovo. Soon after, some unknown persons set fire to the destroyed monastery.

According to information by the Keston News Service, the liturgy in the destroyed temple in honour of saint Kosma and Domian in Zochista was the first in the three years since the Yugoslav military was withdrawn from Kosovo.

A community of seven monks lived there until the NATO intervention in 1999. After KFOR peacekeeper forces were deployed, the monastery was plundered and set on fire, while the building of the old church was razed to the ground.

About 200 local Serbs came to the liturgy in Zochist protected by KFOR forces. The so-called protection of the international peacekeeping forces is already the talk of the town. Here, in Kosovo, during the liturgy, Albanians acted very boldly. The liturgy was accompanied by cries and perdition, and the Albanians threw stones at the priests. A stone hit Father Peter Ulemek’s head, and one of parishioner was also injured.

“Albanian extremists showed their true face to the whole world by committing outrages during the mass,” Bishop Artemy said to the Belgrade newspaper Danas. According to the bishop, in South Kosovo, since the peacekeeping forces were deployed, Albanian extremists destroyed almost 20 Serb Orthodox churches; however, none of the guilty have been arrested.

Sergei Yugov PRAVDA.Ru

Translated by Vera Solovieva

Read the original in Russian: http://www.pravda.ru/main/2002/07/25/44657.html